Maleficent is a rather nice take on "Sleeping Beauty," partly because it focuses on a much more interesting character. Angelina Jolie is well-cast as the "bad fairy," who is really pretty complex and has good reason to want revenge on King Stefan although she discovers loading a curse on a new-born baby that doesn't fire until the kid is sixteen isn't the best way to do it. Among other things, it means you have to make sure the kid survives until she's sixteen, and what do you do when you realize you really like the kid. Elle Fanning has a much less complex character to deal with, so suffers in comparison, although her meeting with Prince Philip is nice.

They did alter the placement of the curse. In this version Maleficent is the one who has Aurora cursed with falling into a sleep like death, while in the original she simply cursed her with death and the third fairy modified the curse. I didn't see that the third fairy gave a gift at all. Maleficent also adds the proviso about 'true love's kiss," after the king pleads with her.

Special effects range from okay to spectacular. My favorite is Maleficent soaring through the forest when she still has wings and fighting battles with great effect. It's losing the wings through treachery that turns her to the dark side. (8 of 10)

On the other hand, A Million Ways to Die in the Westis awful, despite the presence of Charlize Theron who gives a performance that belongs in a better movie, Liam Neeson, Amanda Seyfried and Sarah Silverman. There's a running joke that Silverman's character is a prostitute who services a dozen men on a slow day but she and her boyfriend won't have sex because they're saving it for marriage. This gives Silverman a chance to talk about anal sex and other sexual activites, which really gets repetitive after a while. Theron does work well as an outlaw who is having second thoughts about the gang she's in--she got into it as a child and is smart enough to see that it's a doomed way of life. She does work pretty well with Seth MacFarlane. She's getting a bit old for the part, but I liked seeing her.

The pace tends toward the lethargic. MacFarlane has a lot of trouble finding a proper comic tone for his story. You're better off with Maleficent or watching Rango or Blazing Saddles again. (4.5 of 10)

_________________Evil does not wear a bonnet!--Mr. Tinkles

Sun Jun 01, 2014 12:41 am

peng

Director

Joined: Sun Oct 07, 2012 10:42 pmPosts: 1478Location: Bangkok

Re: Last Movie You Watched

Foreign Correspondent (1940)

Hitchcock's first year in Hollywood, and he suddenly became like Spielberg in the 90's, putting out one dramatic piece and one fun adventure within the span of a year. In this case, I like the latter even more than the award-winning former (Rebecca). It has one very noticeable flaw in one of the movies' most rushed "falling-in-love" phase I have even seen. It is barely saved from the realm of ridiculousness by the leads' strong chemistry and easy performances. Other than that, the film really moves, just one great, exciting set piece after another. Each set piece has enough distinctiveness to be all memorable in its own right; be it the quietly nail-biting windmill hide-and-seek, or the very impressively staged plane crash. In between, the story is efficiently set up and conveyed through snappy dialogue and fun characters as well. The slow transformation of the male lead is rather excellent too, subtle until we recognize it with full force in the rousing speech at the end. 9/10

Sun Jun 01, 2014 5:40 am

JamesKunz

Critic

Joined: Wed Jul 29, 2009 9:35 amPosts: 6010Location: Easton, MD

Re: Last Movie You Watched

peng wrote:

Foreign Correspondent (1940)

Hitchcock's first year in Hollywood, and he suddenly became like Spielberg in the 90's, putting out one dramatic piece and one fun adventure within the span of a year. In this case, I like the latter even more than the award-winning former (Rebecca). It has one very noticeable flaw in one of the movies' most rushed "falling-in-love" phase I have even seen. It is barely saved from the realm of ridiculousness by the leads' strong chemistry and easy performances. Other than that, the film really moves, just one great, exciting set piece after another. Each set piece has enough distinctiveness to be all memorable in its own right; be it the quietly nail-biting windmill hide-and-seek, or the very impressively staged plane crash. In between, the story is efficiently set up and conveyed through snappy dialogue and fun characters as well. The slow transformation of the male lead is rather excellent too, subtle until we recognize it with full force in the rousing speech at the end. 9/10

That's right, peng, that's right.

_________________I'm lithe and fierce as a tiger

Sun Jun 01, 2014 7:10 am

MGamesCook

Producer

Joined: Thu Oct 11, 2012 7:44 pmPosts: 2050

Re: Last Movie You Watched

The romance is certainly a problem there, and I think Joel McCrea is one of the blander leading actors of that time. The fun does come though, from George Sanders and Herbert Marshall.

Good set pieces too. Probably Hitch's best entertainment up to that point.

Sun Jun 01, 2014 3:27 pm

Thief12

Assistant Director

Joined: Sat Dec 15, 2012 9:35 pmPosts: 882Location: Puerto Rico

Re: Last Movie You Watched

Resident Evil Had seen this before, but caught it again today on TV. I never cared enough to see the sequels, but I've always thought this one to be solid fun. It's not devoid of clichés, and it's not particularly well acted, but it's fun; silly fun. Grade: B-

Resident Evil Had seen this before, but caught it again today on TV. I never cared enough to see the sequels, but I've always thought this one to be solid fun. It's not devoid of clichés, and it's not particularly well acted, but it's fun; silly fun. Grade: B-

Yeah I think the later ones tend to be a little better acted and paced than this. But this one holds up I think mostly for its clear, bright photography which is Anderson's signature. Its B movie style is now almost completely extinct, so it's kinda cool from a nostalgia point of view. It's also generally well made. The sets are fully realized, not half-assed like with a lot of B movies, and the production design is slick and interesting. Nice Alice in Wonderland references, though perhaps Anderson was a little too mesmerized by the 1997 flick Cube. But it's a solid entertainment. The best Resident Evil flicks are the ones Anderson directed himself, imo.

One poster wrote that the movie is "flat." I couldn't find a better term to fit my feelings, as well. It doesn't have the charm of the other princess movies. Aurora's voice doesn't fit the character; Mary Costa has a lovely voice but it's too mature for a supposed 16 year old character. The music sounds like it's being played in a tin can. It lacks the depth and beauty of other Disney movies. The story line doesn't flow; it's choppy, at best. The colors chosen are bland; they're not as vivid as the other movies. The movie itself is dark and dreary; I'm not sure if Walt Disney did this purposely or it was an oversight.My three year old loves this movie but I find it painful to watch. Unlike Cinderella or Snow White, which I've seen about 25 times each!

1 / 10

_________________I love this song: Stevie wonder - I just called to say i love you

Sun Jun 01, 2014 8:20 pm

MGamesCook

Producer

Joined: Thu Oct 11, 2012 7:44 pmPosts: 2050

Re: Last Movie You Watched

Contempt

May be the first Godard I outright dislike since initially missing the point of Breathless several years ago. I now really love Breathless, along with many other Godards: vivre se vie, masculin feminin, weekend, slow motion, detective, and histoire du cinema and notre musique. I like, but need a little more time with nouvelle vague, forever mozart, and film socialisme. And even after ALL that, I seriously just don't get Contempt. It's slow and contemplative, but not in a Godard way - feels more like second rate Tarkovsky or something. It's theme is transparent and narrow. Godard contemplates the process of "selling out" by selling out himself in making this movie? Had this been Godard's final film, that might have carried more resonance for me. But the 80s and 90s films I've seen prove that Godard wouldn't and couldnt come close to selling out. So Contempt now seems a bit moot in that sense. Beautiful music, but that's common with Godard. I prefer his later films: trance-like meditations. I like Band of Outsiders and Pierrot or Fou, but their hipness puts me off a little. I don't feel I'm getting from them the complete earnestness of his later stuff. It's weird, but I honestly find some of the later stuff more engaging, and the early stuff more boring.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 4:57 am

peng

Director

Joined: Sun Oct 07, 2012 10:42 pmPosts: 1478Location: Bangkok

Re: Last Movie You Watched

Mr. and Mrs. Smith (1941)

Not as bad as I expected from the reputation, or maybe some of Hitchcock's truly awful silent ones prepare me for a lot more. The tone is jovial, and towards the second half there are even a few laugh-out-loud moments (the smash-cut to the rain during a parachute ride, Lombard pretending noises at the cabin). Still, this is pretty airy and aimless throughout, despite good efforts from Carole Lombard and Robert Montgomery. 5.5/10

Airplane! (1980)

Maybe I'm just not cut out for this brand of comedy, where the absurdist envelops the story from the get-go. I realize this because I don't fall in love with the film as many do, even though I laughed, and the jokes (of every kind) all are well though-out and expertly done. My favorite would be the back-and-forth abortion argument at the beginning, and the scene where the donation people from every religion are knocked out of the way. 7.5/10

Mon Jun 02, 2014 5:27 am

Sexual Chocolate

Director

Joined: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:04 pmPosts: 1834Location: New Hampshire

Re: Last Movie You Watched

peng wrote:

Airplane! (1980)

Maybe I'm just not cut out for this brand of comedy, where the absurdist envelops the story from the get-go. I realize this because I don't fall in love with the film as many do, even though I laughed, and the jokes (of every kind) all are well though-out and expertly done. My favorite would be the back-and-forth abortion argument at the beginning, and the scene where the donation people from every religion are knocked out of the way. 7.5/10

Airplane is one of my favorite movies. I will concede that some of the jokes are dated, but to me that is part of its charm; it's politically incorrect in a way that you can't get away with today. I do think it requires multiple viewings; there are so many jokes, jokes on top of jokes, and so much absurdity that it's easy to miss something. I've seen Airplane maybe ten times and I'm always finding something new to laugh at.

_________________Death is pretty finalI'm collecting vinylI'm gonna DJ at the end of the world.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 6:38 am

peng

Director

Joined: Sun Oct 07, 2012 10:42 pmPosts: 1478Location: Bangkok

Re: Last Movie You Watched

Sexual Chocolate wrote:

Airplane is one of my favorite movies. I will concede that some of the jokes are dated, but to me that is part of its charm; it's politically incorrect in a way that you can't get away with today. I do think it requires multiple viewings; there are so many jokes, jokes on top of jokes, and so much absurdity that it's easy to miss something. I've seen Airplane maybe ten times and I'm always finding something new to laugh at.

Yeah although I didn't love it, I get the feeling it will have high rewatchability because of how fast and varied the good jokes come.

I don't understand the fame of "don't call me Shirley" though. Is it the case where the love for the scene inflates the actual joke, or that the deadpan of it maybe works for other people better?

Mon Jun 02, 2014 7:01 am

Sexual Chocolate

Director

Joined: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:04 pmPosts: 1834Location: New Hampshire

Re: Last Movie You Watched

peng wrote:

Sexual Chocolate wrote:

Airplane is one of my favorite movies. I will concede that some of the jokes are dated, but to me that is part of its charm; it's politically incorrect in a way that you can't get away with today. I do think it requires multiple viewings; there are so many jokes, jokes on top of jokes, and so much absurdity that it's easy to miss something. I've seen Airplane maybe ten times and I'm always finding something new to laugh at.

Yeah although I didn't love it, I get the feeling it will have high rewatchability because of how fast and varied the good jokes come.

I don't understand the fame of "don't call me Shirley" though. Is it the case where the love for the scene inflates the actual joke, or that the deadpan of it maybe works for other people better?

I think it may be the deadpan of the joke. However, it's not my favorite exchange in the film. One I like more is and exchange between Peter Graves and Leslie Nielsen, and it goes something like this:

Neilsen: Captain, I'll be frank with you. This man needs to get to a hospital.Graves: A hospital? What is it?N: It's a big building where they treat sick people, but that's not important right now. What is important is that this man gets medical attention. When will you be able to land this plane?G: I can't tell.N: Well, you can tell me. I'm a doctor.G: No, I mean I don't know when we'll be able to land.N: Can you take a guess?G: Probably not for another two hours.N: You can't take a guess for another two hours?G: No, I mean we might not be able to land for another two hours.

What I like so much about this exchange is that it's all played so seriously, which makes it even more funny.

_________________Death is pretty finalI'm collecting vinylI'm gonna DJ at the end of the world.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 7:40 am

calvero

Director

Joined: Wed Mar 04, 2009 7:44 pmPosts: 1388

Re: Last Movie You Watched

have either of you seen Zero Hour!, the film Airplane is parodying? has much of the same dialogue and plotline, just played seriously. They should release it with Airplane.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 12:22 pm

peng

Director

Joined: Sun Oct 07, 2012 10:42 pmPosts: 1478Location: Bangkok

Re: Last Movie You Watched

Suspicion (1941)

Mixed on this. I feel the story isn't nuanced or has interesting details enough to compensate for the familiarity and weaksauce ending. On the other hand, the two central performances are really good. Joan Fontaine may be better in Rebecca even though she won best actress for this one, but what impresses me the most is that I barely recognize her as the same actress from that Best Picture. The way she composes and acts out her character is totally different. Cary Grant uses his persona to great effect, turning on the charismatic charm one moment and then transform it into a wily, sinister smirk the next. Hitchcock's direction is also excellent as usual, increasingly playing on shadows and lights as the film goes on and Fontaine's character starts having doubts about her husband. 6.5/10

Mon Jun 02, 2014 2:23 pm

Sexual Chocolate

Director

Joined: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:04 pmPosts: 1834Location: New Hampshire

Re: Last Movie You Watched

calvero wrote:

have either of you seen Zero Hour!, the film Airplane is parodying? has much of the same dialogue and plotline, just played seriously. They should release it with Airplane.

I have seen parts of it, and I too think it makes an interesting companion piece to Airplane.

_________________Death is pretty finalI'm collecting vinylI'm gonna DJ at the end of the world.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 2:58 pm

patrick

Second Unit Director

Joined: Sun Oct 07, 2012 4:57 pmPosts: 358

Re: Last Movie You Watched

Sexual Chocolate wrote:

calvero wrote:

have either of you seen Zero Hour!, the film Airplane is parodying? has much of the same dialogue and plotline, just played seriously. They should release it with Airplane.

I have seen parts of it, and I too think it makes an interesting companion piece to Airplane.

I didn't mind Repo Men, but it didn't exactly leave me breathless either. The overly complicated plot is a bit much for me to handle at times, and I got annoyed with the finale because it was much too complex for me. The best thing about this movie would have to be its quirky style and the amiable chemistry between Jude Law and Forest Whitaker. The ending is brain scrambler; see if you have better luck figuring it out. Jude Law has his moments as our quirky, eccentric hero. I'm not into him as many people are, but he can be a fantastic actor. Forrest Whitaker is great in his role, and plays off Jude Law well. Liev Schreiber is a good antagonist for the two men.Bottom line Thoughtful, but too ambitious to even remotely fully get where it wants to be. This is a failure but an interesting one at that, worth a look, but not much more. Be sure to have your thinking cap in tip top order for this one.

6 / 10

_________________I love this song: Stevie wonder - I just called to say i love you

Mon Jun 02, 2014 4:04 pm

JamesKunz

Critic

Joined: Wed Jul 29, 2009 9:35 amPosts: 6010Location: Easton, MD

Re: Last Movie You Watched

peng wrote:

Sexual Chocolate wrote:

Airplane is one of my favorite movies. I will concede that some of the jokes are dated, but to me that is part of its charm; it's politically incorrect in a way that you can't get away with today. I do think it requires multiple viewings; there are so many jokes, jokes on top of jokes, and so much absurdity that it's easy to miss something. I've seen Airplane maybe ten times and I'm always finding something new to laugh at.

Yeah although I didn't love it, I get the feeling it will have high rewatchability because of how fast and varied the good jokes come.

I don't understand the fame of "don't call me Shirley" though. Is it the case where the love for the scene inflates the actual joke, or that the deadpan of it maybe works for other people better?

I think it's just the epitome of the deadpan humor the movie uses.

_________________I'm lithe and fierce as a tiger

Mon Jun 02, 2014 5:34 pm

ilovemovies

Producer

Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2009 11:04 amPosts: 2271

Re: Last Movie You Watched

My favorite exchange from Airplane! is:

Roger, Roger.

What's your victor Victor?

That movie always cracks me up! I love it. It's one of the funniest movies I ever seen. That and The Naked Gun movies I've seen a million times and they NEVER get old!

Last night TBS showed two comic book movies. The first one was Daredevil, which is one of my favorites and is severely underrated.

The second one they showed was Ghost Rider, which is one of the worst comic book movies. And it was even more awful than I remember it being. Wes Bentley is capable of doing good work (American Beauty, P2, The Four Feathers), but he gives one of the worst performances I have ever seen in this movie. The only thing about the movie that was kind of cool was Sam Elliot. But he belonged in a better movie.

Mon Jun 02, 2014 11:11 pm

Vexer

Auteur

Joined: Sun Oct 07, 2012 12:02 pmPosts: 3850Location: Zion, IL

Re: Last Movie You Watched

ilovemovies wrote:

My favorite exchange from Airplane! is:

Roger, Roger.

What's your victor Victor?

That movie always cracks me up! I love it. It's one of the funniest movies I ever seen. That and The Naked Gun movies I've seen a million times and they NEVER get old!

Last night TBS showed two comic book movies. The first one was Daredevil, which is one of my favorites and is severely underrated.

The second one they showed was Ghost Rider, which is one of the worst comic book movies. And it was even more awful than I remember it being. Wes Bentley is capable of doing good work (American Beauty, P2, The Four Feathers), but he gives one of the worst performances I have ever seen in this movie. The only thing about the movie that was kind of cool was Sam Elliot. But he belonged in a better movie.

I thought Ghost Rider was decent for what it was, though the sequel was better, I thought Bentley's performance was pretty good.

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